Over the last four decades, many improvements have been made in the development of disposable diapers. The diapers' appearance, absorbency, fit, softness, size and shaping have all been improved in many different ways.
However, diaper disposal still remains a problem with respect to hygiene, smell and disposal. Some efforts towards improving diaper disposal appear in the patent literature.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,034,760 discloses a combined disposable diaper and disposal bag wherein a thin plastic sheet is affixed over the waterproof side of a conventional disposable diaper and sealed to it along a portion of its periphery to form a permanently attached waterproof pocket with part of the sheet that can be turned inside out to form a bag for the used disposable diaper and to form a flap with the remainder of the sheet which can be closed over the bag opening to seal the bag.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,604,096 discloses a diaper assembly with integral disposal system, including a disposable diaper and an envelope integrally carried on the outside of the diaper, that has a mouth for receiving the diaper when soiled. One or more elements engage a section of the diaper with another section of the diaper to secure it on a wearer in a use configuration and restrict the mouth of the envelope in a disposal configuration.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,706,845 describes a unit combining a diaper dispenser and disposal drawer. The unit consists of two sections, an upper dispensing section and a lower disposal section, which provide a single unit for new and soiled diapers, as well as other supplies used in changing a baby. The upper dispensing section has a number of dividers which define vertical shafts. Diapers are placed in these shafts and are removable at the bottom thereof through adjustable slots. The slots of the upper dispensing section are adjustable by using a removable shelf. The vertical shafts are also adjustable in cross-sectional size to accommodate different sized diapers. A slidable front panel permits easy access to one or more of the vertical shafts for reloading. The bottom disposal section comprises a cabinet generally rectangular in shape with a pivoting, top-opening door. This disposal section may contain a separate bin, such as a plastic bag or bucket which is easily removed to dispose of soiled diapers and other waste. The door additionally has a liner along its edges making the lower section of the unit airtight and thus odor-free. Space is also provided to allow the user to place a deodorizer within the lower section.
FR2699401A1 describes a nappy (diaper) having a pouch built into its outer surface, containing a plastic bag which can be withdrawn through a hole in the outer wall of the pouch by pulling on a projecting tab. Once the bag has been withdrawn it can be turned inside out, enclosing the used nappy, pulling its top closed with a draw-string. The nappy can then be disposed of hygienically.
US2002029546 discloses a method for disposing of a soiled disposable diaper comprising the steps of: providing a bag made of a plastic material, the bag having a front panel and back panel integrally sealed together along the left and right side edges and the bottom side edge thereof and having an opening at a top edge of one of the panels, a seal flap connected to and being integral with a top edge of the other one of the panels, a strip of adhesive extending across the sealing flap and a cover strip extending across the front of the seal flap over the strip of adhesive, removing the cover strip, placing a soiled diaper in the plastic bag, folding the seal flap over the opening in the bag and onto an adjacent panel, pressing the strip of adhesive against the adjacent panel to generally seal the bag, and placing the generally sealed bag in a waste disposal container.
US2004176735 describes a packaged diaper, including a diaper, having a first, a nominal size, and a second, reduced size, the reduced size of the diaper being convenient for carriage and storage of the diaper. The diaper is disposed in an encasement in the second, reduced size. The encasement confines the diaper so that the diaper is retained in its reduced size by the encasement and so that the diaper is returned to its nominal size upon opening of the encasement.
EP0888766A describes a disposable nappy having a body, an outer surface of the body, and a pocket formed on the outer surface of the nappy for containing the body of the nappy when the used nappy is folded and the pocket is inverted neatly and easily, prior to disposal.
GB2414676A describes a disposable nappy which has a nappy sack incorporated into the back of the nappy. Preferably the nappy sack is released by pulling a tab which also forms the handle of the nappy sack. The nappy sack may envelop the nappy and be tied for hygienic disposal. This invention may eliminate the need for using separate nappy sacks.
FR2898488A describes an integrated device for wrapping used and rolled disposable nappy by a circular stretchable elastic fibrous membrane, which is integrated in the nappy in its external back and upper surface. The membrane comprises an orifice at the center of the membrane, which is provided with an elastic ring, and stretches when user grabs a central elastic ring.
WO0016679A describes a system for disposing of products of metabolism, especially human products of metabolism. The system consists of a base part which can be reused and a disposable multi-layer liner which is essentially adapted to fit the base part and is detachably fixed to the same. The invention also relates to a multi-layered, bag-shaped liner and to the use of this system and the liner in the fields of nursing, care of the elderly and care of infants.
DE102005007004A, to Gandolfo, describes a disposable nappy, which has a disposal bag stored between the inner absorbent layer and the impermeable outer layer. The disposal bag is permanently connected to the outer layer and can be pulled out from the inside of the nappy, via a slit-type opening to permit its disposal after use.
US2006282056, to Ramsey, describes one or more improvements includes a fluid-impermeable bag attached to or integral with a disposable diaper, the bag having closure elements on the outside of the front and back panels of the uninverted bag. After use, the bag is inverted over the soiled diaper and the closure elements interact, thereby closing and sealing the soiled diaper inside the bag. In some embodiments the bag is covered by a removable fabric element, such as a gauze panel, which may be decorated.
WO08023363 describes a bag attachable to an article to permit convenient disposal of the article after use, comprising a bottom section having an adherent outer surface for attachment to the article, a top section overlying the bottom section, and a tubular main section joined at one end to the bottom section, the tubular main section being of an expansible construction, normally in a contracted condition between the top and bottom sections, but being expandable to an expanded condition to define a compartment for receiving the article after use, at least one of the sections being formed with an opening to be used when introducing the used article into the compartment formed by the tubular main section in its expanded condition.
Despite the teachings of the publications hereinabove, there are no products available on the market, which address all the problems of diaper disposal. Moreover, the inventions described hereinabove do not provide full solutions to the aforementioned diaper disposal problems. For example, some of the aforementioned publications teach disposal bags placed within/adjacent to an absorbent layer of the diaper. This locally increases the thickness of the diaper. The disposal systems placed externally on an outer layer of the diaper interfere with the movement of a person wearing the diaper. As can be seen from FIG. 2 of US2006282056, the bag is attached to an impervious backing sheet, and requires the formation of an extra layer (cover 118) to cover the bag, which may be opened or dislodged by the movement of the person wearing the diaper. There therefore remains a need to provide ergonomic products for convenient and hygienic diaper and sanitary towel disposal.